quilt

American  

[kwilt] / kwɪlt /

noun

1. a coverlet for a bed, made of two layers of fabric with some soft substance, as wool or down, between them and stitched in patterns or tufted through all thicknesses in order to prevent the filling from shifting.

2. anything quilted or resembling a quilt.

3. a bedspread or counterpane, especially a thick one.

4. Obsolete. a mattress.

---

verb (used with object)

1. to stitch together (two pieces of cloth and a soft interlining), usually in an ornamental pattern.

2. to sew up between pieces of material.

3. to pad or line with material.

verb (used without object)

1. to make quilts or quilted work.

quilt British  

/ kwɪlt /

noun

1. a thick warm cover for a bed, consisting of a soft filling sewn between two layers of material, usually with crisscross seams

2. a bedspread or counterpane

3. anything quilted or resembling a quilt

---

verb

1. to stitch together (two pieces of fabric) with (a thick padding or lining) between them

   to quilt cotton and wool

2. to create (a garment, covering, etc) in this way

3. to pad with material

4. informal to strike; clout

Other Word Forms

• quilter noun

Etymology

Origin of quilt

1250–1300; Middle English quilte < Old French cuilte < Latin culcita mattress, cushion

Explanation

A quilt is a thick cover for a bed, made from pieces of fabric that are stitched together and filled with padding. Quilt is also a verb, so you can quilt a quilt. The simplest quilts have two layers of fabric that are sewn on either side of a layer of batting, a thin type of stuffing. Patchwork quilts have small pieces of cotton sewn into patterns, and the fabric is sewn over the batting with stitches that make decorative designs. A quilt was originally the same thing as a mattress, and the word comes from the Latin culcita, "mattress or bolster."

Example Sentences

Husband said fans often looked like a "patchwork quilt" with different colours of shirts in the stands but were brought together by the national dress.

From BBC • Mar. 24, 2026

This quilt chart can teach that lesson in seconds.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 5, 2026

I ended up draping a quilt over the front end.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 20, 2025

I still get an urge to call her—to talk about a recipe, to discuss a quilt idea, to ask about how she navigated her early retirement years.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 4, 2025

She had made him the quilt that had come with him to every foster home he’d ever had.

From "Boy 2.0" by Tracey Baptiste

Related Words

• bedspread
• blanket
• comforter